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On Tuesday, the second round of matches started at the Africa Cup of Nations tournament taking place in Egypt. The first teams to compete were the A group teams - the host Egypt and the Moroccan national team, whose match ended in a goalless draw. Meanwhile, the Ivory Coast footballers defeated the Libyan team, securing their second victory and a place in the quarterfinals.
Egypt 0 - 0 Morocco
In the fiercely contested North African derby called the match, both teams had plenty of opportunities to score, but the ball never found the back of the net.
Perhaps the most realistic chance of the match came in the 23rd minute for Egypt's player Ahmed Fathi, but after receiving a great pass from the team captain Ahmed Hassan, he missed the goal.
In these matches, Egypt's attacking leader Mido did not have much luck, as he was replaced in the 80th minute. Even his replacement, Emad Moteab, could not take advantage of an opportunity at the end of the match.
The best player of the match for the Morocco team could be considered their goalkeeper Tarik El Jarmouni, who saved his team from dangerous Egyptian attacks throughout the match and made an impressive save against Abdel Zaher El Saka's shot from about 30 meters at the end of the match.
Libya 1 - 2 Ivory Coast
10` [0 - 1] Didier Drogba
41` [1 - 1] Abdelsalam Ezwae
74` [1 - 2] Gnegneri Yaya Toure
The Ivory Coast footballers started the match more actively, and the goal did not take long to come. In the 10th minute, after a great run by Arouna Kone on the left side and a goalkeeper's mistake following an injury to the team's attacking leader Didier Drogba, he had no choice but to send the ball into the Libyan national team's goal.
After the missed goal, the game on the field changed drastically, and the Libyan national team took control, pressing the Ivory Coast footballers who had made numerous changes to their starting eleven after the first tournament match.
Libya's pressure paid off just before the end of the first half - in the 41st minute, a shot by Abdelsalam Ezwae with his head found its target.
In the second half, the Libyan team had several more real opportunities to score, and Nader Karo's shot even hit the opponent's goalpost, but the score remained unchanged. Everything turned upside down in the 74th minute when Yaya Toure headed the ball past the goalkeeper and put the Ivory Coast national team ahead.
After this victory, the Ivory Coast national team with 6 points after two matches secured their place in the quarterfinals of the tournament, lacking just one point to qualify for the title of group winners in a match against the host Egyptian footballers.
